1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a skate with in-line wheels the usage of which is related to the technique of ice skating.
2. Discussion of Background and Relevant Information
The aforementioned type of skate is intended for training ice skaters outside the skating rink, as well as for all athletic people desiring to maintain or perfect the techniques used in gliding sports such as downhill skiing, cross-country skiing, ice skating, etc., on a hard surface of asphalt, cement, etc.
Just as in those sports, the practice of this sport consists of a motive or propulsive phase in which the skate is pushed toward the outside and the consequently inclining wheels are leaned upon, analogously to digging in the edges of an ice-skate blade, then a gliding phase, executed by repositioning the wheels perpendicular to the ground.
In this same technique of skating on in-line wheels, braking is accomplished by lateral drag of the inclined wheels or conversely by opposition.
Turns are also executed by leaning laterally on the wheels.
As mentioned above, this sport is practiced on asphalt surfaces, cement, or other hard surfaces which are generally composed of rough materials such as gravel, small pebbles, or even small but genuine obstacles such as repaired patches, paving stones, seams, etc.
Of course, these constitute an impediment to the smooth flow of skating, because they cause vibrations which make the practice of this sport uncomfortable.
Consequently, this accentuates fatigue, thus diminishing performance, especially since steering precision is also affected.
It is known to overcome these drawbacks by providing means of damping, i.e., shock absorption.
This can be a matter of inserting a layer of rubber between the shoe and the plate of the chassis, for example, but in that case comfort is obtained at the expense of precision and steering.
It can also be a matter of inserting a shock-absorbing sole into the shoe, but as in the previous solution, skating precision is affected. Moreover, this entails a variation in the volume that determines how the shoe fits, depending on the compressibility of the material constituting the sole. The result is a compromise between comfort and precision that cannot both be preserved at the same time.
Another known shock absorption technique makes use of an axle of the wheel which is supported by two more or less flexible rings, but performance suffers as a result of this, because the available volume of currently used bearings does not allow adjustment of the guidance of the wheels.
Moreover, using such means creates a floating effect in the wheel which is detrimental to the proper handling of the skate.